Life and Health Planning

An advance directive (or living will) allows you to decide who you want to make health care decisions for you if you are unable to do so yourself.

This article answers common questions about Advance Directives, Health Care Agents and Medical Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment forms.

Assisted living is a residential program that provides housing, supervision, personal care services, health related services, or a combination of these to residents who are unable to perform activities of daily living or who need help performing them. As an assisted living resident, Maryland law provides you with certain rights.

In Maryland, Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRC) offer older adults a variety of services and care facilities, ranging from independent living arrangements to nursing home care. This article discusses the issues making a decision.

Under the Medicaid Waiver, the federal government "waives" the requirement that services be provided in a nursing facility and pays for home and community based services for those who otherwise go to a nursing home.

Nursing homes are facilities that are licensed to care for residents who need rehabilitation, health-related services above the level of room and board, or skilled nursing services. You have many special rights as a nursing home resident under both Maryland and federal law.

You (or your representative) have the right, without threat or fear of retaliation, to make suggestions, make complaints, and present grievances.

Issues to consider before you sign.

This article explains the general timeline for administering an estate in Maryland.

A will is a written legal document that states what you want done about various topics after you die.  A will can include your wishes about what happens to your belongings (called the "estate"), and about who will care for any minor children.

For many Marylanders, their home is the single largest and most important asset in their family. Protect it with proper estate planning.

A life estate is a type of property ownership where two or more people have ownership rights. The life tenant is the person with the right to possess and use the property for the duration of their life. This means that the life tenant has lifetime use of the property.

The titling of your property is an important concept to understand to determine who has access to your property and what will happen with that property when you die.

What are reverse mortgages and what are the common pitfalls.

This article defines and describes the basic law of trusts.

There are different ways that your loved ones can receive your personal belongings and property after you die.

Guardianship is a court proceeding. When an adult is unable to make personal decisions, such as medical decisions, or to handle his or her own property, a court can appoint a guardian.

In Maryland, a guardian should only be appointed if there are no less restrictive alternatives. During the court guardianship proceeding, the court must first determine there is no less restrictive alternative available, so consider alternatives prior to beginning guardianship proceedings. This article lists some, but not all, available alternatives.

Establishing a guardianship is a formal, public, legal process. It is initiated when someone files a petition with a Maryland circuit court to be appointed guardian for an “alleged disabled person.” It should be noted that a disabled person is always an “alleged” disabled person until that person is determined by a court to be disabled, based on competent medical evidence, affidavits or opinions. Prior to that determination, a person is presumed to have capacity. If the court determines that a person is disabled, the court will appoint someone, most often an interested person, to serve as guardian, and issue an order setting out the terms and conditions of the appointment.

Interested persons play a pivotal role in guardianship proceedings. For example, only an interested person can petition for guardianship.

If the alleged disabled person does not already have an attorney, the court will appoint an attorney for the disabled person. This is required to ensure that the alleged disabled person’s due process rights are not violated during the guardianship proceedings.

Whether or not the guardianship is contested, a hearing on the guardianship petition will be conducted in the circuit court for the county in which the petition was filed. The two main issues in a guardianship hearing are (1) whether a guardian is needed (i.e., is the alleged disabled person really disabled?) and (2) who is the most appropriate guardian for the disabled person. The Petitioner has the burden to prove both of these issues.

This article describes what a Family Safety Plan is and important terms to know.

This article describes documents that are part of the safety plan and things to consider with each.

Guardianship is a legal process where the court appoints a person to manage a minor’s personal affairs (non-financial decisions), financial affairs, or both. The court can appoint one person to manage the minor’s personal affairs and another person to manage the minor’s financial affairs. The court can also appoint two people as co-guardians to share the guardianship responsibilities. The court is the ultimate guardian and will monitor the guardianship.

Guardianship is a legal process where the court appoints a person to manage a minor’s personal affairs (non-financial decisions), financial affairs, or both. This article addresses some frequently asked questions.

A standby guardian is a person appointed by a parent (or parents) of a child to take care of the child in the event that the parent is mentally or physically incapable of doing so, or subject to an adverse immigration action.

View Maryland's Statutory Form Limited Power of Attorney, from Md. Code, Estates and Trusts, Section 17-203

View Maryland's Statutory Form Personal Financial Power of Attorney from Md. Code, Estates and Trusts, Section 17-202

A power of attorney is a document that gives someone legal authority to act for another person.